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GP3 2017 Budapest, Hungary preview

2017 Round 4 preview

All there is to know about the fourth round of the season. Round 4 of the 2017 GP3 Series sees the grid form to race at the Hungaroring in Budapest, Hungary.

Warm Up // Niko Kari – Arden International“I’d say it’s a good track, and there’s always a good atmosphere for the races there, and a lot of people come to the races, and a lot of Finns especially! The track is really nice with the new asphalt they built up last year, and I’m sure it’s going to be a great race and I’m really looking forward to it.

“The main thing for me on the race weekend there is qualifying: it’s not that easy to overtake there, especially as the races don’t have that many laps, so qualifying is the key, and we probably need to find a bit more speed there! The races are going to be really tough because of the hot weather, so it’s really physical. Overall it’s a really nice weekend, from my point of view.”

The StakesRound 4 of the 2017 GP3 Series sees the grid form to race at the Hungaroring in Budapest, Hungary. The tight, technical circuit is well known to the teams and drivers, who tested on the track at the start of June: the drivers who succeed this weekend will need to get everything perfect given the wealth of knowledge of the circuit within the teams, and the difficulty of overtaking in racing conditions.

The third round of the series took place in Silverstone, where local hero George Russell laid out his aspirations for the title very clearly: the Mercedes F1 junior driver set the pace all weekend long, topping free practice and qualifying for pole position in race 1, from where he swooped into the lead after dispatching teammate Anthoine Hubert for a strong win in front of friends and family, and narrowly missed out on a second podium after hounding Niko Kari in the closing stages of race 2, with the Finn holding on to cross the line behind debutant winner Giuliano Alesi and Jack Aitken.

Russell set the pace on day 1 of the recent test in Budapest, topping both sessions in the process, but he was unable to match the overall pace of teammate Nirei Fukuzumi, who grabbed day 2 by topping both sessions and setting a faster pace than the Briton to claim the overall test honours: the Japanese driver will be hoping to replicate this form to get his championship fight back under way.

Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Head of Car Racing:

“Although the speeds are relatively low, the Hungaroring works the tyres hard throughout the lap. This has been considered with our selections of the medium compound for GP3, with the intention that as usual drivers will have to display some degree of tyre management: an important skill for them to learn on the way to Formula 1. It could also help to create close racing at a circuit where overtaking is not easy.”

Noteworthy

Matthieu Vaxivière replaces Santino Ferrucci at DAMS in car #14: the American has stepped up to FIA Formula 2 with Trident.

The swap is the first driver change for 2017.

The Budapest round is the last round of the championship before the traditional mid-season break: the next round will be in Spa-Francorchamps on 25-27 August.

There have been 5 race winners so far: Fukuzumi, Maini, Russell (2), Hyman and Alesi.

Siebert, Falchero and Hyman will be contesting another round of the GP3 Series with their Campos Racing-entered cars.

Campos Racing head to Hungary to contest the fourth round of the GP3 Series at the Hungaroring what marks 2017 mid-season with still four remaining at the Spa-Francorchamps, Monza, Jerez and Yas Marina. France’s Julien Falchero, South Africa’s Raoul Hyman and Argentina’s Marcos Siebert will be behind their Campos Racing-entered Dallara GP3/16 cars once again.

Falchero delivered an impressive performance at Silverstone and scored his first points of the season. Previously, Hyman grabbed a sensational maiden race win at the Red Bull Ring in a lights-to-flag domination. Siebert also finished in the top ten twice in a display of his budding racing talent.

The races almost ever take place in high temperatures at the Hungaroring and together with its twisty layout and bumpy tarmac the Hungarian venue is particularly demanding for drivers.

Besides, track’s surface often varies over the course of the weekend as it is dusty on Fridays.

After free practice sessions, qualifying takes place on Saturday morning at 09.45 (CET). Later that day, the first race is scheduled at 17.35 (CET). Finally, Sunday’s race two will get underway at 09.10 (CET).

source: camposracing.com

Trident Racing

Team Trident, GP3 Series, Hungaroring Preview Ready to do it all again at Budapest!

Back from their Silverstone win, Team Trident will be lining-up for the final round of the three-race summer stint that saw their car constantly on top.

The toughest and most challenging part of the GP3 Series is set to be completed next weekend at Budapest with the running of the third July race of the 2017 championship. The fourth round of the year is starting with all the best premises for Team Trident after the Italian squad posted a spectacular win with 17-year-old Ferrari Driver Academy racer Giuliano Alesi at Silverstone. The team has all what it takes to do it all again in Budapest, and the Hungaroring track won’t be new for teams and drivers as they have already lined-up for a valuable test session there at the beginning of June. The same test where the Team Trident drivers showed great level of performance.

Giuliano Alesi has the goal of confirming his solid growth while Dorian Boccolacci intends to continue his front-running season with another consistent performance. St. Gallen’s Kevin Jörg, who was steadily in the points zone in the UK, and quick American Ryan Tveter are both aiming for the front end of the pack. Team Trident is set to fight among the best of the series again!

Giacomo Ricci, Team Manager:
“The win we got at Silverstone must not make us content. In fact, it must provide us with the motivation needed to line-up aware of our potential at the Hungaroring. Our drivers worked well with our technical staff and performed at great levels in last June’s test. I have a positive feeling and I look forward to the upcoming round of the series”.

The Formula 2 cars will go on-track for the first time at 11:55 on Friday, while qualifying will go underway later the same day at 15:55. The Team Trident drivers will be taking-off on Saturday at 15:40 for the Feature Race while the Sprint Race will start at 10:35 on Sunday. The GP3 Series team will also start the weekend with practice on Friday, at 17:50, while qualifying will be on Saturday morning at 9:45. Race 1 is also scheduled for Saturday at 17:35, while Race 2 will go underway at 9:10 on Sunday. The two series will benefit from the usual live TV coverage plan which includes the Sky Sport network.